Flavors of the world; Taste of Nations: Overwhelmed with great food, entertainment — and lots and lot of people
Published 9:06 am Monday, April 23, 2018
- A woman hands out Chinese food during the ninth annual Taste of Nations Saturday at the National Guard Armory. Photos by Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
The annual Taste of Nations drew a torrent of crowds on Saturday, a witness to how much Austin area crowds love rich cultures, good food and good entertainment.
“It’s amazing,” exclaimed Penne Lee of Austin. Lee was being carried along with the waves of people who crowded into the Austin National Guard Armory. “We’ve been to every one of these, ever since it was at the (Oak Park) Mall, and I’ve never seen a crowd like this.”
Chef Jack Erwin, working from The Cedars of Austin booth, agreed.
“It started at 11 a.m. and boom! It’s been like this ever since,” he said. One of the organizers reported the event began with 300 people at the door.
A young group of dancers, Veracruzano, performed during the ninth annual Taste of Nations Saturday at the National Guard Armory.
Scores of countries were represented, serving up samples of native cuisine, from the Greek rice pudding, served up by Erwin, at The Cedars of Austin booth, to the “I’m not sure what it’s called but I love it” sample from Pakistan, enjoyed by Angie Loecke.
“Everything is so good,” she said, adding it was hard to pick a favorite. She said she had another excellent sample from the booth representing Africa, and enjoyed German potato salad and mini-Reuben sandwiches from Germany.
Lee echoed the tastiness of the Taste.
“Every year it gets better and better,” she said, adding that the Hispanic cuisine was her favorite.
There was plenty of entertainment to enjoy while sampling the fare. Dancers representing over a dozen countries performed native dances, adding a colorful splash to the overcast day. Several attendees chuckled to see dancers representing the Czech Republic stepping lively to a Mexican song, as they waited to perform in the corner of the hall.
Booths also offered up information from a number of agencies and services in the community.
The ninth annual event was sponsored be Welcome Center, Inc., Austin Human Rights Commission, Riverland Community College, Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota, Vision 2020, First Farmers & Merchants, US Bank and Accentra Credit Union.
